By Ian Hinze

There is growing concern in Australian avicultural circles about the long-term future of some of the well-known native species. Birds under threat include the following:

1. The pictorella munia has become a rarity as an aviary species partly because it has not been a popular species and suffered from "avicultural neglect." An example is the price (in Australian dollars) in the latest Guide to Bird Prices list published by the Avicultural Society of Australia for member to member transactions: star finch $55 pair, white-rumped parson finch $50 pair, black-headed Gouldian finch $60 pair, and a pair of pictorella munias $150, if available.

2. Guaranteed pure-normal Bourke's parakeets are not freely available due to the ever-increasing mutations being developed.

3. Various reports show the strikingly beautiful gang gang cockatoo is not readily available in numbers as they are listed in "The Guide" at $2,500 a pair, whereas the roseate cockatoo sells for $50 a pair — member to member.

Because the Australian goverment banned the trapping of native Australian birds several years ago, Australian aviculturists cannot replenish stocks of aviary birds with much needed new blood.

Acknowledgements: My sincere thanks to the ever-helpful Graeme Hyde.